A World Beyond
by Denise Hunter
Summary: A young girl is stuck in an unknown world. She soon makes friends with Brad, Caine, Alanna, Ronk, Jack, and Melody. She is torn on the subject of returning home or not.


-----Prolog----  
  
Denise sat on her bed waiting for the sun to fully rise. She tied her hair up then pulled her goggles onto her forehead as she quietly made her way through the hall onto the creaking porch. She swung the door open and jumped into the moist grass. Just beyond the house's gate lied a beautiful beach. The air was cool and salty as she made her way to the shore. The waves crashing against the distant rocks and the sandy beach created a lullaby, which the girl fell asleep to.   
It seemed as if only minutes had passed before she awoke to a different surrounding. She was lying down in the middle of a dusty plain. She coughed a little clearing her mouth of the dust she has swallowed while sleeping. The girl stood up and looked around. In the distance there was a large black structure shimmering in the sun. After Brushing her shirt and pants off she began walking towards the building. Denise opened a large black door. She peeked inside then pulled her full body in. There was a table with a few men and a woman sitting at it. Denise cleared her throat and spoke, "Excuse me?" One of the men looked up at her, his gaze was piercing.   
"What do you want?" he said harshly.  
"I need a ride to the nearest town," Denise quivered as she said this.   
"If you have money…."   
"Of course I do!" She cut him off.   
"Fine, let's go then," he replied. He began to walk down a long corridor that led to a hollowed out room. Denise strained to see what was in it. Finally, they walked in. Denise could finally see what was contained in the room. Right in front of her was a large black and purple robot that was shaped like some sort of bird. She stared up in awe at the vehicle. The quiet moment was broken by the man's voice, "Are we going or not!" He stared down at her, "I have no time to waste child."   
"I'm ready sir." She replied looking down once again.   
"Get in then" he said as a large ladder came down from the side. Denise climbed into the metallic creature along with the other man. He began to flip some switches and to turn the thing on. Denise smiled as they took off above the land. "Pay up," the man said. Denise quickly stuffed her hand inside the backpack she had brought along. Slowly she yanked out $200.00. "This is all I have sir," She whispered.   
"WHAT IS THIS!" he screamed in a rage. He pushed the money the money back and shoved her out of the bird. Denise screamed as she attempted to hang on to the side, but it was no use, the sides were slippery. Her voice no longer seemed to work. Why is it always me? Will I ever have a good day in my life? I'm not too high off the ground maybe I can live! Pft, what am I thinking…unless there is a mattress below I'm either gonna' die or be paralyzed for life. As she thought this tears streamed from her eyes.   
She hit something with a thud. "I'm…. I'm still alive!" she screamed out.   
"Yeah, but I don't know how I'm doing," a man's voice came from below her. Denise quickly stood up and looked down. Her eyes bugged a bit as she saw a young man lying on the ground. She held out her hand helping him up. She looked down once again and began to cry. "What's wrong?" the man asked her.  
"I…I…I'm sorry," she managed to sniffle out. She fell to her knees. "I don't know what to…to..do!" She blurted out in between tears.   
"Come, have lunch with us, we can talk this over with you." Another man added. Denise looked up at them. The first man was dressed in a long coat without arms and khaki colored pants. He has dark blue eyes and long light brown hair. She then turned her attention to the second man. He was wearing the same kind of coat only black. He was also wearing baggy black jeans with a pair of short leather gloves. This man was quite unique, as he had bright red eyes and medium length brown hair with red tips. Denise then shook her head. "What's wrong now?" The first man asked.  
"I have no money," she sighed.   
"You can share my food alright?" he added.   
"Thank you sir," she said nodding. "By the way, what are your names?"   
"My name is Brad," the first man said.  
"I'm Caine," the other one added in  
"By the way miss, what's your name?"  
"My name would be Denise Borthwick," She said while bowing. After the introductions they walked into a tiny diner. Denise jumped into the booth next to the window before anyone else could sit down. Caine then took his place in the booth across from her while Brad scooted in next to Denise. Denise got a puzzled look on her face as she raised her pointer finger. "So where exactly am I?" she asked.   
"Welcome to Zi!" Caine blurted out.   
"This all seems like a dream," she whispered. Brad waved his hand in the air trying to catch the attention of one of the waitresses. One of the young women walked over with her tablet and pen. "What's up guys?" She said smiling. "I take it you want the usual." Brad and Caine both nodded. "What about your lady friend?"   
"She'll be sharing with us, Leah" Brad replied. Leah nodded and walked off towards the kitchen. Denise sat silently at the window watching the zoids coming and going. These zoids…they are beautiful. It would be great if I could get myself one. Denise let out a long sigh as she turned to face her two companions. Leah returned with their meals on a tray. She passed Caine a hamburger and Brad a steak. "Here's your food guys," Leah said smiling.   
"Thanks Leah, " Caine said waving.   
"Here Denise, eat some," Brad said. He picked up a fork and handed it to her. Denise smiled as she tore off a small chunk of the steak. "After this we should probably head back to the den," Brad managed to say in between bites. Caine nodded in approval from across the table. Denise's smile turned to a frown.  
"Where do I go from here," she whispered.   
"You're coming with us as well Denise so cheer up," Brad said as he glanced over at her. The girl nodded again. A half an hour passed before the group was ready to go. Caine headed over to Leah handing her a tip and the money owed. He then ran over to meet Denise and Brad. As soon as they made it to the door Naomi and Leon trotted in. "Oh god," Brad sighed. Denise hid behind Brad's body, she was still a little bit afraid to be seen. Caine smiled as he greeted them.   
"Hi Naomi!" Caine said hugging her. She just walked past him over to Brad.  
"Hey there Br…." Naomi's eyes widened as Denise popped her head from in back of Brad. Denise turned white; it looked like this woman wanted to strangle her.   
"Hi Naomi," Brad replied. "This young lady beside me is Denise."   
"I see…" Naomi murmured. Her face was somewhat twisted with anger and her tone certainly had changed. "I need to be on my way Brad, I will see you later."  
"Same here Naomi," Brad replied. The 3 companions walked from the café over to two zoids. Caine walked over to a large black feline one while Brad walked over to a smaller black canine one.   
"What are their names?" Denise asked.  
"Mine is the Black Death Liger," Caine answered. "I just call him Liger."  
"This is Shadow Fox," Brad said smiling at the zoid. "I got him not too long ago"  
"Let's be on our way," Caine said as he hopped into his zoid. Brad Helped Denise climb into the cockpit. She sat down on a little corner of the seat. Brad jumped in after her taking his place at the controls. The zoid quickly started up and they were off heading for what Caine and Brad called the Den.  
About 30 minutes after the three had left café the found a new structure. Denise had fallen into a deep sleep from the exhaustion. Brad began to slow the zoid down causing Denise's head to rattle against the window. She immediately woke up rubbing her head. A large red door opened on the whale like structure. Inside she could see some sort of hanger. Liger made his way in first followed by the Shadow Fox. Once the large door had closed Brad opened the cockpit. Denise, who was still a bit groggy, almost slipped out; luckily Brad caught her once again. Caine popped out of his zoid.  
"Come on, you need to meet Doc," Brad said quietly.   
Denise slowly nodded and followed the two. The only sound that was heard was the echoing of their clanking shoes. As they continued there was a faint sound, the sound of music playing. They came to an open door where the soft piano music was playing. Caine smiled and waved to whoever was occupying the room. Denise made her way to his side and peeked in. She smiled as well when she saw another young women sitting at the piano. She wore a burgundy shirt and old blue jeans. Her face wore a soft smile and green eyes framed by brown hair. Although she had a faint smile her eyes were full of sorrow, almost dull. Caine yanked Denise by the arm pulling her further down the corridor.  
"That was Alanna by the way," Caine said.  
"She has amnesia and is quite alone," Brad added.  
"I see," Denise murmured.  
A bright light pierced the dark corridor. They walked into a large open room where two other people stood. One was an older man. He had on glasses and a white overcoat. The rest of his outfit was black. His eyes were a hazel color and his hair light brown with small spots of gray. The younger women had bright red hair and sparkling green eyes. She wore the same white coat and similar glasses.  
"The women there, she's Melody," Caine said.   
Caine then pointed to the older man.  
"That's jack…you can call him doc though," Caine smiled.  
"Or you can call me Mr. Rainsfeld," Doc said smiling. "It is quite nice to meet you young lady."   
"My name is Denise Borthwick," Denise said as she shook his hand.   
She made her way over to Melody to shake her hand then slowly walked back to where Brad and Caine stood. In a matter of seconds Denise's knees locked her eyes closed tightly and she fell to the floor.   
The blankets and the pillow were warm and soft. She didn't want to wake up, not in this world. So any thoughts swimming in her mind. How do I get out of here? How do I get home? She rolled over and grunted. 


End file.
